


Inhale.Exhale

by laughingwolves



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-11-27
Updated: 2012-12-06
Packaged: 2017-11-20 12:14:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,092
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/585313
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/laughingwolves/pseuds/laughingwolves
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>All the things one has forgotten screams for help in dreams. -Elias Canetti</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. September 1st-23rd

Isaac sat on the bench, watching the rest of the team warm up. He watched everyone but felt his eyes always drifting back to #37. Jackson Whittemore. 

Passion for the sport radiated off the boy. The need to win, even at conditioning for try-outs. His eyes blazed when one goal was missed. His forearms were always tense while holding the stick. He didn’t need confirmation, he knew he made the team. And he basked in it. A sly smile settled on his lips as he threw his helmet down at Isaac’s feet. 

The coach called, ‘Lahey, Greenberg, Mahealani, and Stilinski. Get in line!’ Isaac pushed himself off the bench and ran out unto the field. They ran back and forth shooting goals, passing and blocking each other. After about a half an hour, Finstock yelled again, ‘Lahey, welcome to first line!’ Isaac flinched when the coach smacked him on the back. ‘Thank you Coach.’

Isaac fished his backpack out from under the bench and proceeded to the locker room. He tucked his helmet under his arm and opened the door with his free hand. As he walked into the locker room and around a corner he saw Danny, his closest friend and Jackson’s best friend. Isaac’s eyes wandered over Danny’s bare torso, his abs stretching as he reached to the top of his locker. 

“What did I say about staring Isaac?” Danny reached out and slapped his face lightly. 

Isaac shoved him playfully. “How could I resist?” Isaac winked at him. He and Danny had been friends since sophomore year. He hadn’t known Danny was gay when they met, but he found out after one too many nights sitting in Danny’s room with nothing to do. Isaac had found a great friend in Danny, and not just for the benefits. 

After putting his lacrosse gear in his bag to take home for laundry, Isaac takes a quick shower while Danny waits. He pulls on a pair of grey sweatpants and a fitting black shirt. “Ready?” He nudges Danny with his elbow as he walks past. Danny gets up and follows him out into the hallway. Isaac’s truck is the only vehicle left in the student parking lot and he opens the door then gets behind the wheel. Danny throws his duffel in the back and hikes himself up onto the passenger seat. 

Dark settles as they pull out of the lot and unto the deserted stretch of road. 

Isaac’s thumb taps lightly on the steering wheel to the rhythm of the song. He sees out of the corner of his eye Danny turning in the seat. And hears the question before it’s out of his mouth.

“Do you like Jackson?” Isaac laughs. 

“I don’t know. He’s very handsome. That’s all.” Isaac says.

“I saw you watching him today. I can talk to him for you. He’s a nice guy.”

“Yea, coming from his best friend. Anyways, I’m not looking. I’m fine the way things are right now.”

Danny looks at him and frowns. “Are you sure about that?”

“Yes, I’m sure ,” Isaac replies weakly as he pulls into Danny’s driveway. Danny tugs his bag from the back, reaches over and plants a kiss on Isaac before jumping out of the truck. Isaac licks his lips and backs out, turning left to head home. 

The beginning of senior year. It was a pretty good start compared to sophomore year when Isaac's father had died. Now he lived with Scott and Derek; most of the time. Scott's mother had adopted Isaac after everything that had happened but he mostly went back to his old house to be on his own. Derek lived with Scott too because when Melissa found out Derek was staying in his old house, she was appalled. 

_'What? You're living in that burnt down house? No. You'll stay here. Derek. Here.' She had stared at him and tapped her foot until he agreed._

Isaac turned into his own driveway and killed the engine. He gets to the door and turns back for his bag. A loud screech pulls his attention to the house across the street. A silver Porsche speeds into the garage. The garage doors closed before Isaac could catch a glimpse of the boy driving. 

He pivots on one heel and heads into his house. 

Later that night Isaac retrieves his polaroid camera and a small black pouch from his backpack and settles in at his desk. He unzips it and takes a stack of photos from the pouch. He spread them across the desk, looking at them individually. There were shots of lacrosse practice, a close up of Danny’s smile, a row of chairs in English class, the tires on his truck, among others. As his eyes swept across them, he got stuck on one in particular. 

The background was blurry, but the focus was on one thing. One person. Isaac studied the picture. Jackson held his lacrosse stick across his shoulders, hands hanging over the stick. He had a smile on his face as he talked with someone beyond the frame of the shot. Isaac picked up the photo and attached it to the string on one wall, among his other favorites. The other photos he had taken during the day he gathered and piled into a wooden box he kept next to the desk. As he picked up the last few, one polaroid slipped out of his fingers. Isaac bent down and picked up the picture, it was Danny. Danny was looking down at his book, his mouth turned up. A smile spread across Isaac’s own face and he pinned the picture next to Jackson’s. 

Isaac made himself dinner and stayed up watching re-runs of old Family Guy episodes. His laughter echoed through the house. He finally went to sleep some time around 3 am. He had little memory of his dreams from the night. 

Snippets of the dream came back to him as he drove to school. His brows furrowed because he could make no sense of it. They had no relevance to each other. He dropped it and turned on the radio. Fifteen minutes later his truck pulled into the parking lot next to a blue jeep. He stepped out, took his sunglasses off and dropped them into the front pocket of his backpack. 

'Hey man,' he squeezed the back of Stiles' neck. Stiles squirmed under his grip. 

'There are nicer ways to greet a person you know.' Stiles complained. They walked into school together where they met up with Scott and Allison. 

Isaac bumped fists with Scott and smiled politely at Allison. In a matter of seconds Isaac saw Lydia approaching the group, her handbag hanging in the crook of her elbow. She stopped next to Allison and tapped her heel. 'Allison you are still coming over tonight right?' Lydia looked at the older girl expectantly. 

Isaac doesn’t know Lydia. Well he knows her but he doesn’t know her personally. He remembers asking her out before he knew he got a boner from seeing other boners. He remembers her looking around at her friends, giving him a sly smile and then her perfect mouth saying, ‘Right. Come back when your bike has an engine and not a chain.’ Isaac knew Lydia had been dating Jackson for a very long time. The queen bee, and the ultimate jock. They were meant for each other. But they had broken up, Isaac didn’t know why, neither did he care. 

Allison looked to Scott then back to Lydia, 'Yea, sure.' She smiled widely. 'Perfect,' Lydia starts to turn away. 

'Lydia, hey,' Stiles stutters. He runs his hand over his head. 

Lydia looks back at him and offers a tight smile before spitting his name out sharply. 'Stiles...' 

 

Isaac feels a hand on his back, pushing him towards the back of the locker room, he turned his head to see Danny. ‘What are you doing?’ Danny doesn’t answer. Isaac looks forward and sees Jackson standing in front of his locker, shoving his gear onto the shelves.

‘You gotta be kidding me Danny.’ Isaac tries to turn back.

‘Come on Isaac, just say hi.’ Danny pleads with him. 

Isaac shuts his eyes for a quick second before opening them just as Jackson turns his head to see Danny and Isaac standing next to him. Jackson looks at each of them for a while before saying, ‘Hey.’

‘Hey J, this is Isaac, he just joined the team.’ Danny smiles at Jackson and nods. Isaac looks over at him and frowns. 

Isaac extends his hand to Jackson, ‘I’m Isaac.’ Jackson turns to face him fully. He takes Isaac’s hand in his and shakes it. Isaac pulls away but Jackson’s fingers linger a bit longer than necessary. 

By this time Danny has completely disappeared and left Isaac on his own. Isaac laughs nervously and leans against the lockers. Jackson looks back to him, ‘I’ve seen you somewhere before. More than once, but I can’t put my finger on it.’

‘Crosse Gear. I go there a lot, and I always see you there.’ Isaac tries to say it without sounding like a stalker. Because thruth is, sometimes he’s driving home and stops there just so he can go in and walk around aimlessly. Swiftly ducking out of the line of sight when the wind chimes above the door jingle after he opens it. 

Jackson smiles, ‘Oh, yea. I work there. But I don’t think that’s it.’

Isaac knows it’s because they live so close but he doesn’t want to mention it. Instead he tells Jackson he has to go. 

‘You live across the street. You’re the kid with the F-150?’ 

Isaac nods and smiles, ‘Yep, that’s me.’

Jackson closes his locker and backs up, ‘See you later man.’ Isaac waves, though more to himself as Jackson has already gone out the door. 

The week goes by in a flash. Isaac is consumed by homework, first week tests and girls hovering, not knowing that he wasn't the least bit interested in them. They would call his name as he walked by, hoping for him to go over and talk to them. Sometimes he would. Sometimes he would just smile in their general direction. 

Isaac payed attention in class. He did well on his tests, turned homework in fairly on time. The only thing that bothered him the most were his dreams. Stark images of his father painted with blood, lying dead on the passenger seat of his car, the door ripped off and thrown down the alley. Isaac dreams it all. That wasn’t the way his father died, he had a heart attack. These dreams were a different world. Dreams so vivid he wakes up thinking he was actually living through it. Dreams so real he wakes up with tears in his eyes. He can't find a reason for why the dreams are suddenly pestering him. Jarring him awake and tormenting his waking hours. Before they used to be tiny whispers in the back of his head, nothing to worry about, something he could sleep over. Not now. Now they're loud and insisting. Distracting even.


	2. September 24th-30th

Isaac wakes up on Friday morning. His heart racing and his head spinning. He pulls the sheets off and plants his feet on the ground. His arm brushes against his shirt and he looks down to see that his shirt is completely soaked through. Isaac gets up and walks to the mirror slowly, fearing he might fall any any second. In front of the mirror he takes a look at himself, his hair frazzled, his shirt a darker red than before he went to bed, and his face; pale. Isaac runs his fingers through his hair as he looks away from the mirror. He sits on the bed with his head in his hands. What feels like five, but is actually twenty minutes later his alarm rings and he jolts awake, he had fallen over and drifted into sleep. He rubs his eyes and runs his hand over the clock trying to find the off button. The dead silence of the house doesn't sit well with him so he opens his laptop, turns on the music and goes into the shower. 

Isaac is out of the bathroom in no time and rushes to get dressed. He had forgotten that Danny asked for a ride that morning. By the time Isaac is locking the front door, it's 7:45. He races along the streets while trying to stay somewhere near the speed limit. 

Danny was already waiting for him when he pulled up by the curb. 

'Hey,' Isaac watches him as he puts on his seat belt. 

'Late much?' Danny smirks at Isaac. He puts his window down and hangs his arm on the ledge. 

Isaac tells Danny that his alarm didn't go off. Isaac isn't quite sure why he lies, but he doesn't let the thought stay in his head too long.

They pull into the school as the first bell rings. Lucky thing it's senior year and they don't really have a first hour class. Isaac and Danny go to library and sit at an empty table on the far side next the the aisle filled with books on mythical creatures. On the table sits a thick book, and Isaac picks it up to read the cover. 

_The Classic Study of Lycanthropy_

Isaac scoffs and pushes the book the to end of the table. He looks up as Danny's phone vibrates and he checks it. A smile spreads across his face and Isaac asks what it is.

'Jackson is coming.' Isaac's breath catches, but Danny doesn't notice. He doesn't know when it happened. He wasn't usually. Actually he wasn't ever attracted to boys like Jackson, he always seemed to gravitate towards people like Danny. Quiet and nice, but not a push over. Jackson was aggressive and didn't tolerate much. 

Isaac unconsciously preps himself as he notices Jackson walk through the doors. He pulls up his sleeves and runs a quick hand through his hair. Jackson drops his backpack on the floor next to the chair and sits next to Isaac. He leans his elbows on the table and breathes heavily.

'What's up?' Danny shakes his head signaling nothing new. Jackson turns his neck to look at Isaac, 'Hey.'

Jackson smiles and Isaac licks his lips. 'Hey.'

Danny eyes both of them. A smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. He pulls a pack of gummy bears from his bag and offers them. Isaac shakes his head. Jackson reaches across the table to pull the bag from Danny's fingers. In doing so, his hand brushed against Isaac's. Isaac feels a jolt run through his body to places he rather not mention and feels slightly embarrassed for the things going through his head. He looks down hoping to hide the flush of pink he is sure has creeped into his cheeks. 

Movement across the table catches Isaac's eye. He looks up to see Danny packing his up and scoots back from the table. He gets up and says he has to go. 

'See you at lunch buddy,' Jackson says. Danny gives Isaac a knowing smile and turns to leave. Isaac's brows furrow. What was that about? 

People begin to flood into the library. Jackson and Isaac decide to leave, there's only fifteen minutes until class starts anyways. Isaac stuffs his hands in his pockets, nervously moving his jaw. They stop outside the library doors, not sure where to go next. 

'What class do you have next?' Jackson asks. 

'I have Physics, but I have to go to my locker." Isaac motions to his left.

Jackson only nods and follows Isaac down the hall. Isaac opens his locker and stares inside for a moment. 

'So, Isaac. Any plans tonight? It is a Friday.' The boy laughs. 

'Nah. I'm one of those stay at home types.' Isaac takes the physics book from his locker. 

'Really? I wouldn't have guessed that', Jackson tilts his head slightly. Isaac nods and takes an extra folder from the locker. Isaac holds on to the door of the locker, the cold seeping into his hand. He's hoping it helps because it feels like he's standing in the middle of the sun. He's extremely hot but he's not sweating. 

'My friend is having a bonfire on the beach tonight. Wanna go?' Isaac closes his locker but he loses his balance and it makes a loud noise as the door closes. Isaac flinched and pulls himself together quickly. He clears his throat and fixes his eyes on Jackson. 

'Yea, sure. What time?' Isaac puts his backpack on one shoulder and holds on to the strap. He catches himself watching the movement of Jackson's lips. A second later he realizes Jackson is actually saying something to him. Isaac shakes his head, 'What?' 

Jackson laughs and puts his hand on the boy's side. Isaac feels his muscles reel from the sudden contact. 'I said, I'll come by at 6:30.' Jackson removes his hand and winks as he walks down the hall. Isaac stands in his spot watching Jackson's back as he walks down the hall, carefully dodging swinging bags and students on their phones. Isaac smiles to himself as he crosses the hallway and ambles into class. He take his seat next to Stiles. Scott stumbles into the classroom just a second shy of the final, late bell. He collapses into his desk and lets out a puff of air.

‘Mr. McCall, ever punctual. Welcome.’ Mr. Harris perches on the edge of his desk and gives Scott a condescending and very annoyed look. 

‘Lahey’, Isaac looks up to Harris staring directly at him. Isaac taps his pencil against the open book in front of him. ‘Who invented the Theory of Relativity?’

‘Albert Einstein’ Isaac shakes his foot nervously, the entire class gazing at him. 

Isaac thought that would have been the right answer, he did the reading. But apparently he was wrong because in no time Harris was at it again with the quotes. He rose from the desk and walked towards Isaac. He stopped right before Isaac, walking his fingers against the edge of the desk. 

‘No, wrong. But Einstein did once say,’ The class gave a collective sigh. ‘The difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits.’ Isaac turned his head and saw Stiles roll his eyes.

‘Mr. Stilinski. Anything to say?’ Stiles shakes his head. ‘That’s what I thought’. Harris went ahead and taught the rest of the lesson.

The bell couldn’t have rang any faster than Scott, Isaac and Stiles were out of the class. ‘What a douchebag, why is he even teaching physics? I thought I had gotten rid of him after Chem. Hey, I’m Mr. Harris and I’ll ruin your life with detention and Einstein quotes all while managing to make you look and feel completely ridiculous.’ Stiles frowned. Scott laughed and went the opposite direction to see Allison at her locker. As Stiles went on about how Harris was practically keeping him from first line. Isaac spots Jackson walking with a teammate across the hallway. They near each other and Isaac unknowingly runs his hand through the front of his hair, he is tempted to keep his eyes on the floor but he forces himself to maintain eye contact. Jackson winks at him as he passes by, Isaac smiles and lets himself look away. 

He feels a hand press against his arm. ‘Hey! What was that about?’ Stiles narrows his eyes at him. Isaac feels another hand hang on to his backpack, and hears Danny’s voice. 

‘I’d like to know the same thing’, Isaac turns to see Danny smiling so wide, his dimples are full blown craters on his face. Isaac stopped suddenly and shuffled his feet. 

'He asked me to go to the bonfire with him tonight.' 

Stiles laughs, ‘Pffft, I totally saw that coming dude! Have you seen the looks he gives you? This is great!’ 

Isaac looks at him, confused, ‘Tell me again how this is great for you?’

Stiles hesitates, ‘I don’t know man. Good for you. Moving us up the social ladder eh?’ He gives Isaac a wide smile and backs away down the hall. Isaac looks to Danny and raises his eyebrows. Danny hasn’t said anything the whole time. 

‘Danny. Is it okay?’ Isaac watches Danny’s face. 

‘Why wouldn’t it be? He’s just my best friend Isaac. I don’t have any feelings for him. Besides, he’s not my type.’ Danny pushes him into the class. Isaac drops in his seat, across the room from Danny. A few minutes later, his phone vibrates in his pocket. He pulls it out while the teacher has her back turned, it’s text from Danny.

**We’re going shopping after school.**

Isaac shakes his head and texts back.

**No. No we’re not.**

Isaac looks over his shoulder at Danny frowning at him. Danny raises his eyebrows and Isaac knows exactly what it means. It means, “We’re going, I don’t care what you say.”

Isaac sighs miserably as his fingers fly across the keyboard.

**Okay, but no Hollister. Last time you made me wait for like an hour.**

He remembers sitting on a bench in the waiting area as Danny tried on nine different pairs of pants and then tried them on again. He only ended up buying one. And a jacket that Isaac hasn’t seen him wear since. 

**Fine.**

Isaac smiles to himself, he’s pretty low maintenance. It shouldn’t take too long to find something he likes. 

He was wrong. 

‘Who decided this was a good idea?’, Isaac asks as he buttons up a flannel shirt. 

‘I did. And it’s an amazing idea. Shut up and put on the jacket.’ Danny pulled the coat from the hanger and threw it over the door.

Danny made him try on multiple outfits. ‘Danny, I own jeans. I don’t need these.’

‘Trust me, you will. Plus these make your ass look divine.’ Isaac smiles, despite himself. 

Isaac tries two more outfits before he gives up and goes against everything Danny is saying. He keeps the jeans, pulls a dark green Henley from the pile of clothes by his feet and shrugs on the leather jacket Danny gave him before. He unlocks the door and steps out. Danny looks up at him from a magazine and laughs.

‘Kind of wish I was the one going on that date with you.’ Danny stands.

‘It’s not a date.’ Isaac corrects him quickly. ‘This isn’t even necessary.’

Danny spins him towards the mirror. ‘Look at yourself man. You look great.’ 

Isaac smooths the jacket and tugs at the shirt. He takes off the jacket and hands it to Danny, he pulls off the shirt too, and throws it at him as he changes back into his clothes. He pays for the jeans, the shirt and the jacket and scolds Danny on the way home for making him spend that much money. 

By the time Isaac is home, showered and dressed, it’s 6:55. Jackson is late. 

Isaac open his room curtains and peers across the street at the white, glass filled house. He doesn’t see Jackson’s car but he does see Jackson. The boy runs down the stairs two at a time and crashes through the front door. He stops before the garage door and looks across at Isaac’s truck. He takes a step back as if considering taking his own car. Isaac closes the curtain and goes downstairs. As his foot hits the floor, the doorbell rings. He waits a bit then opens the door slowly. Jackson smiles, ‘Is it okay if we take your truck?’ 

Isaac nods and steps out of the house. Isaac hesitates before turning to look at Jackson. The other boy looks amazing. His shirt clinging to all the right places, not to mention his jeans.

‘You look nice.’ Isaac whispered.

‘Of course. It’s _Versace_. You look very handsome.’ Jackson’s eyes lingered on Isaac making him feel slightly self conscious. Isaac opened the door and took his jacket off. He threw it behind him into the back seat. It wasn’t hot, but the jacket made him feel crowded. 

Jackson climbed in next to him. He looked around the car. 'Nice ride.'

Isaac looked at him in surprise. 'I wasn't expecting that. It was my brothers.' Isaac pulls out of the driveway and turns the truck in the direction of the beach. He merges onto the highway and relaxes a little. Isaac takes his eyes off the road for a second to look at Jackson. The sun was just setting, the orange and red hues bounced off the glass and hit Jackson’s face in all the right places. Perfectly highlighting every curve and sharp line of his face. 

Jackson’s hand pulls Isaac’s attention, ‘Take this exit, it’s faster.’ Isaac looks behind him and then swerves three lanes over, managing to get on the exit just in time. Jackson clutches to the door and breathes, ‘Jesus. What was that?’

A shaky laugh spews from Isaac’s mouth. ‘One. You should have given me an earlier warning. Two. You should have put your seat belt on.’ He smirked at Jackson. 

Jackson laughs and quickly pulls the seat belt across his chest and pushes around until he hears the click. 

A few minutes later, Isaac parks along the beach. He kills the engine and hops out after Jackson. He walks next to him, but makes sure to keep a couple feet between them. Isaac doesn’t know why, but he’s all of a sudden very nervous. By now, it’s gotten dark, the fire is burning bright and there a good amount of people lounging around. The music is soft, drifting into Isaac’s ears as they get closer to the group. Isaac sees a couple being intimate and looks away. He rubs the back of his neck and looks to Jackson. The boy motions for him to follow. Isaac does. He’s introduced to some of Jackson’s friends. A few he already knows from the team. Some are girls that Isaac presumes don’t go to their school from the way they fawn over Jackson. 

The music picks up and Jackson parts from his friends. He grabs Isaac by his arm and pulls him towards the center. 

‘I love this song.’ Jackson moves his body along to the beat. Girls engulf him before Isaac has a chance to get close to him. He backs out of the crowd and looks around. Someone catches his attention and he realizes that it’s Allison. He stumbles over to her, his feet sinking into the sand with every step he takes. 

‘Hey,’ Allison jumps, startled to see him.

‘Isaac. Hi. What are you doing?’ She smiles at him.

‘I could ask you the same. Is Scott here with you?’ 

Allison nods just as Scott walks up behind her. Scott wraps his arm around Allison’s waist and bounces a little on his toes.

‘Hey man. Mom’s been asking for you.’ 

Isaac tells Scott that he’s been staying at his house for a while but he’ll be back the next week. He begins to feel a little uncomfortable standing there with them so he says he has to go and walks the opposite direction. 

He spots a cooler and ambles over to it. He stands before it considering whether or not it’s a good idea to drink. Isaac reaches in and takes two bottles from the ice. Going against his better judgement. He slips one into his pocket and pulls the cap from the other. He puts it to his mouth and downs about a half of the bottle in one drink. Isaac coughs violently because of the bitter taste. He’s never been one for beer, but tonight he just feels like it. So he brings the bottle up and takes another swig. The liquid runs down his throat and Isaac chases the drops of it from his lips with a swipe of his tongue. He looks down the length of the beach and then behind him towards the fire. He searches for Jackson, but doesn’t find him. Isaac takes off down the beach, walking slowly. With no purpose. 

Laughter carries from the bonfire and invades Isaac’s train of thought. He takes the other bottle of beer from his pocket and quickly drinks it. He stumbles a bit and the bottle falls from his hand. Isaac bends to pick it up, but ends up sinking to his knees. He scoots around so that he’s facing the water. He pulls his knees up to his chest and looks out at the horizon, trying to distinguish what is water and what was sky. 

Isaac sits in the sand. He picks up a handful of sand and watches it fall through his fingers. Before he can stop himself, tears are running down his face.

In Isaac’s mind he is back to the day he was told his brother had died. Back to the day when his entire world had crashed and burned. 

_‘Isaac.’ His father rose from the sofa and took a step towards him. Isaac closed the door and took out his earphones._

_‘Hey Dad.’_

_His eyes drifted down to the coffee table. He saw the letter, the ripped open envelope with the U.S Army logo on it. It was only then that he noticed two other men in the room. Isaac looks between the three men._

_‘What’s going on? Is Cam home?’_

_‘Isaac. I’m sorry.’ Isaac looked at his father, confused. His Dad’s face was drawn, his eyes red and tired._

_‘What are you sorry ab-’ The realization hit Isaac at a devastatingly fast speed. His face fell and his phone slipped from his hand. It bounced against the floor and his father flinched. He knew. His brother wasn’t home. His brother wouldn’t be coming home._

_Isaac’s knees buckled below him and he held on to the wall trying to keep himself upright. His body felt empty. His mind blank._

_‘No.’ Isaac’s vision went blurry and he tried to blink it back into focus. ‘No,’ he whispered as he crashed to the floor. His father rushed over to grab him. Isaac held on to him, bunched his shirt in his fists and cried on his shoulder. Isaac opened his eyes, the men stood on the other side of the room, their eyes cast down, hats in hand._

The wind chills Isaac and the hairs raise on his arms. He scrambles from the floor, brushes the sand from himself and wipes his face with his shirt. He walks back to the bonfire and searches for Jackson. He finds him standing at the edge of the fire, his hands in his pocket. Isaac can tell he had something to drink too. The light from the fire flickers over Jackson, catching the light in his eyes over and over again. 

‘Hey, you okay?’ Isaac asks as he stands alongside Jackson. 

‘Yea. I’m fine.’ Jackson looks over at him. ‘You look cold.’ Isaac hadn’t realized he had his arms wrapped around himself and stopped Jackson as he began to take his own jacket off. 

‘No, I’ll just go get mine from the truck.’ Isaac tells him softly. The fire crackles and Isaac looks into it. The sound was soothing, he felt his body relax. 

‘Can I come?’ Jackson asks. Isaac nods and they walk side by side to the parking lot. Isaac’s foot catches on something and Jackson holds on to his belt loop to keep him from falling. Isaac laughs out loud and rolls his eyes at his clumsiness. Isaac fishes around in his pocket for his keys before they reach the truck. He reaches out his other hand to run along the sides. His fingers dipping in and out of the tiny dents on the door. He fumbles on the lock and feels Jackson’s hand close over his. 

‘Here. Let me.’ Jackson opens the door with ease and Isaac leans in to get his jacket. He pushes himself up and turns, he is surprised by what waits for him. Jackson is much closer to him than before, looking up at him through thick eyelashes. Isaac shifts his body, his lower half a bit aroused. Jackson’s face is shaded, but still visible from the street light. Isaac swallows and licks his lips. Lips that are covered by Jackson’s in less than a second. Isaac is caught off guard but he catches up not too long after, dipping his neck and pushing Jackson back down on his heels. He nips at Jackson’s bottom lip and moans a little as the boys cold fingers find their way under his shirt.

Isaac moves to Jackson’s neck, kissing and sucking at his jawline. He’s surprised at what he is doing and pulls back. 

‘What?’ Jackson looks up into his eyes. 

‘Nothing. Nothing.’ Isaac lies. He isn’t sure why he stops. But he doesn’t have time to think about it because Jackson is pushing him back into the cab of the truck. Isaac is laid out against the seat, his feet hanging out and Jackson climbs on top of him. Isaac reaches his hand down to rearrange himself as his dick strains against his jeans. Jackson moves Isaac’s hand and presses his hips down. Isaac squirms a bit and Jackson smiles before kissing him hungrily. Isaac kisses back with just as much force. Jackson moans into Isaac’s mouth, licking at his lips and pushing at his shirt. The part of Isaac’s back that’s exposed sticks to the leather and he pushes up trying to detach himself. In doing that Jackson’s hip presses against the horn. 

A deafening noise cuts through the night. 

‘Get a room!’

‘Oh come on!’ 

A group of people walking by shout at them. Isaac laughs. Jackson sighs heavily and collapses against Isaac. 

Isaac laughs louder, bordering on the line of hysterical. 

‘Shhh,’ Jackson whispers and presses a hand over Isaac’s mouth between his own laughter. He pushes himself off and sits up. He puts his hands on the steering wheel and leans his head down, careful not to sound the horn again. Isaac fetches his jacket from the floor and shrugs it on. 

They sit in silence. Jackson’s head still on the wheel and Isaac looking out the window at the sky. 

‘Isaac. I didn’t mean for any of that to happen. I had something to drink and I guess I was just a little-’ Jackson waves his hand about. ‘I’m really sorry.’

‘Nothing to be sorry about. I kissed you back didn’t I?’ 

Jackson lifts his head from the wheel and looks at Isaac. His face unreadable. 

‘We don’t have to talk about it.’ Isaac offers. Jackson nods and pulls the keys from the dash where it had been thrown. He starts the engine and puts on the seat belt. 

They don’t speak the length of the ride home. Isaac wonders if he was wrong in even going to the bonfire. Maybe if he hadn’t drank, he could have prevented anything from happening. He rubbed his eyes with the heel of his hand and jumped out of the truck as soon as it came to a stop. 

Isaac walks to the other side and stands before Jackson. He raises a brow and shrugs. Jackson takes his hand and drops the keys in it. Isaac closes his hand around it and reaches for Jackson’s face. To his surprise he doesn’t pull back, so Isaac kisses him. 

Soft and slow. Isaac lets go first and steps back. He runs his hand through his hair and smiles. 

‘I’ll see you around.’ Jackson smiles back and turns to leave. Isaac goes into the house and closes the door, but watches from his window as Jackson crosses the road and enters his house. 

It’s a while before a single light comes on. In Jackson’s bedroom. Isaac lets the curtain fall close and retreats into the kitchen. He takes his phone from his pocket and sees a few missed calls and 3 texts. It’s 1 am, Isaac thinks. Too late to reply. So he leaves the phone on the table and bounds up the stairs to his room. He strips down all his clothes and throws them into the hamper. 

Isaac lies in bed, awake, for a long time. Just thinking. He tries not to go back to that day. He tries to think about everything but that. But just before he drifts off to sleep, it’s the last thing that goes through his head. 

‘There’s nothing you can do kid. Your brother is gone.’


End file.
